India crash New Zealand’s resurgence as Ishan Kishan powers charge in 5th T20I

It was a dream finish to the T20I series as Team India battered through the defences of New Zealand, securing their fourth win of the fray in a high-scoring encounter in Trivandrum.

Ishan Kishan spearheaded the show while Hardik Pandya and Suryakumar Yadav complemented him perfectly as India totted up a staggering 271.

Winning the toss, India opted to bat first. Sanju Samson (6) couldn’t really get going. However, Abhishek Sharma (30) started the innings on the same note of brilliance, rocking the ball into all corners of the park. Smashing four fours and two sixes, Sharma propelled India into a fiery start before Lockie Ferguson could breach his defences.

However, the equation flipped from thereon as Ishan Kishan and Suryakumar Yadav joined the act. Kishan regulated the innings with an iron fist while SKY continued in his own rhythm, laying waste to the Kiwi bowlers. Ishan had a modest start to the innings, smashing 18 off the first 16 balls that he faced. However, the second half of his knock was all about his belligerence.

It all started with a smack against Ish Sodhi in the ninth over, where he launched the latter over long-on for a maximum. He didn’t have to look back after that. He completed his half-century in just 28 balls. The next fifty for Ishan came in only 14 balls, as he completed his maiden international ton in just 42 balls.

Suryakumar Yadav had a similar trajectory as he started on a controlled note but soon the gears flipped as the Indian captain scored for fun. SKY brought up his half-century from just 21 balls, leaving the Kiwi bowlers in utter disarray. The duo added 137 runs for the third wicket from just 57 balls before Mitchell Santner could finally remove SKY.

However, that did very little to dissuade Team India from treading the path of madness. An incoming Hardik Pandya started on an aggressive note as Ishan Kishan was firing on all cylinders by then. Ishan finally fell on 103 to Jacob Duffy as India was already well-poised at 233/4.

Pandya took over the reins and finished at 42 off 17 while India racked up 271/5 from 20 overs, the highest T20I total scored against New Zealand in the shortest format of the game.

Despite a Finn Allen(80) show from the word go, Arshdeep Singh got the better of Tim Seifert (5) in the very first over. That did very little to dent the eager Kiwi spirits as Allen continued with his rampage at one end. He was joined by Rachin Ravindra who gave him the perfect company as the duo added 100 runs for the second wicket in just 48 balls.

Axar Patel finally rattled the partnership, getting the better of Allen while a second whammy from him saw Glenn Phillips (7) succumb to the growing scoreboard pressure. To make matters worse, Rachin Ravindra (30) fell in quick succession, reducing New Zealand to 137/4, soon to be 137/5 as Mitchell Santner (0) didn’t trouble the scorers at all.

Daryll Mitchell (26) and Ish Sodhi (33) did come up with some late fireworks but the ship had already sailed as India controlled the narrative. Arshdeep Singh reigned supreme with figures of 5/51, as New Zealand was bundled out for 225. Ishan Kishan bagged the Player of the Match award for his scintillating century while Suryakumar Yadav walked away with the Player of the Series award for racking up 242 runs.